


Hot Syrup

by oorsprong, PolypusRegina



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Apples, Autumn feels, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Married Life, Praise, Romance, Sappy, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, apple picking, ask your dentist before reading, darkside husbands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-29
Updated: 2016-10-29
Packaged: 2018-08-27 15:24:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8406883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oorsprong/pseuds/oorsprong, https://archiveofourown.org/users/PolypusRegina/pseuds/PolypusRegina
Summary: Darkside husbands at an apple orchard.  Autumnal sap, fresh from the trees.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pidgy_writes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pidgy_writes/gifts).



> This short piece was inspired by our trip to an apple orchard and is given with love to a sweet soul who loves apple-picking!
> 
> 10/29 update - and the sweet soul in question, Pidgy, has drawn something beautiful for this story, please enjoy:
> 
>  
> 
> 11/14 update - illustration in the story provided by [Katherine](http://katherine1753.tumblr.com/post/153191409659/kylo-placed-the-bitten-apple-in-the-basket-and)!!

“Brell, look at this one,” Kylo said, tugging at a branch to pull a gleaming apple towards them.  A small bug clung to one of the leaves and he plucked it between his fingers and stared at it, brow furrowed.

 

“I think these little bugs like the apples too, I always see them on these trees.”  He placed it on the apple as though curious as to what it would do.  “It’s a nice one, though, isn’t it?”

 

“The bug or the apple?” Hux teased, gently nudging Kylo in the side with an elbow. The same arm held a small basket, filled with a few of their earlier picks--all decidedly bug-free. Hux wasn’t necessarily _frightened_ of the creatures, but he wasn’t all that keen on bringing them home, either.

 

Kylo picked the apple and blew on it until the bug fluttered away.  He set it down in the basket where it shone an even brighter shade of violet than the others, then turned and kissed his husband on the cheek.  “Don’t be absurd,” he murmured before turning back to the branch.  Hux was right, the fresh air and the trip north to the orchard had done wonders for his mood.  The two had returned to Kheel to enjoy a few weeks of the wary peace that had sprung up in the wake of Coruscant’s Fall-- as the media had so dramatically dubbed it.  

 

“Well, you never know… You’ve had far stranger collections than a few insects.”

 

Hux moved so they could walk side by side as Kylo headed further down toward another tree, more than happy to let him lead the way. And while he’d obviously been looking forward to the trip for his own reasons, he was mostly just thrilled to see his husband relaxing and enjoying himself. It seemed a small, silly sort of pleasure, but a pleasure nonetheless. And soon enough, a delicious one.

 

“It makes me happy to see you enjoying yourself too,” Kylo said, throwing a quick smile in Hux’s direction.  He picked another apple, inspected it carefully and then took a bite before offering one to his partner.

 

“Enjoying myself but still thinking a bit too loudly, apparently,” Hux answered, a grin curving the corners of his mouth before he stopped and leaned in to take a bite of the offered apple--without taking it from Kylo. He pulled back, licking his lips, and then dove right back in to steal a quick smack of a kiss.

 

Kylo placed the bitten apple in the basket and drew Hux into another kiss, longer and sweeter.  “Mm, you taste better,” he whispered, “and your cheeks are so red.”  He framed his husband’s face in his hands.  “Should’ve brought a scarf.  But I don’t mind kissing you warm again.”

 

Hux’s smile only widened, cheeks pressing against Kylo’s broad palms as he tried to quell his uncharacteristic giddiness.

 

 

“That’s your strategy, warming me up with kisses?” He lifted his hands to cover the ones cupping his face, lacing their fingers together. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt…”

 

Kylo grinned and indulged himself in another kiss before leading Hux to a clear patch of grass in a sunny spot where his cloak could serve as a makeshift blanket for the both of them.  He sat down and drew Hux into his arms, hugging him from behind and murmuring against the back of his neck,“I wish we never had to leave this place.”

 

Hux hummed softly in response, an acknowledgment and an agreement all in one as he pressed back against Kylo and all but melted into his embrace. Tipping his head back to rest against his husband’s shoulder, he turned his head to nuzzle in against his neck and murmured:

 

“It is pretty close to perfect, isn’t it?”

 

“It’s paradise,”  He replied, giving the lithe body in his arms a comforting squeeze and pulling them impossibly close together.  “It’s too bad we didn’t bring any supplies.  I wouldn’t mind spending the night here.  Too cold to sleep out in the open, though.”

 

Hux gave another non-committal sort of noise, as if he might have been considering it anyway. It didn’t feel too bad with the sun shining and Ren’s arms wrapped so tightly around him. But obviously at night, he would lose at least one of those comforts.

 

“Next time, perhaps. We’ll plan for it.”

 

Kylo reached for the apple he’d started and took another big bite before handing it off to Hux.

 

“We should probably head back soon.”  But he made no move to do anything of the sort and instead closed his eyes, drinking in the sounds and scents of the orchard.

 

“Because it’ll be dark?” Hux asked, reaching back to take the offered apple and stealing another bite for himself. Some of the juice dripped down over his lip and he wiped it up with the heel of his palm before handing it to Ren once more.

 

“Mmm, because this setting, while stirring, isn’t really a practical place for everything I’m in the mood for.”  He took one last bite and then tossed the half-eaten apple away.  “I might be enjoying myself a little too much.”  He pushed a tantalizing thought in Hux’s direction; one too private for him to even voice aloud in their secluded spot outdoors.

 

Hux went a little wide-eyed as he looked out over the field they were in, his attention very swiftly drawn inward to that _tease_ of a thought as it brushed over his own mind. But once it sank in and finished washing over him, he just answered with a soft laugh.

 

“Right, of course. How foolish of me to assume otherwise?” Hux shifted to turn around in Kylo’s lap, settled with his legs draped over his husband’s hips so he could lean in close enough to very nearly kiss him. “Should we get going, then? Or would you rather us torture ourselves out here a bit longer?”

 

Kylo surged forward to take the offered kiss, sucking gently on his husband’s lower lip where the sweet taste of apple still lingered.  Long fingers tangled in Hux’s hair.  “Don’t tempt me, torturing you is my favorite past-time.”

 

Hux breathed another soft laugh against his lips, chin tipped up to let the tip of his nose bump against Kylo’s. “Trust me, _Nymminill,_ I’m well aware…”

 

Letting his arms curl around Kylo’s shoulders, he pulled him in even closer, too caught up in the moment to worry about the sight they made should anyone see them. Perhaps it was torture, knowing they’d have to stop themselves at anything more than kissing, but the good mood he was in made him a bit of a risk-taker as well.

 

The knight lay back, pulling Hux down with him.  “How much do you think we can get away with?   I haven’t seen anyone for at least an hour.  I’m sure I’d hear them before they got close… what do you think?”  He slipped a hand into Hux’s back pocket to give him a friendly squeeze.  “It’s exciting in a way.”

 

Hux tried for a disapproving sort of scowl but a grin won out, curling into the corners of his lips as he shifted with Kylo to straddle his waist instead.

 

“Exciting,” he repeated with a little arch of his brow, testing the word out to see if it fit. His hips automatically rolled back to meet Ren’s teasing grip, clearly unaffected by the danger of being caught. “If you think you would really hear anyone coming before they could see us, then I suppose we could get away with an awful lot, don’t you?”

 

In a moment Kylo rolled them both over, pinning Hux beneath him.  “Is that a yes, then?”  He shifted to make himself comfortable, indulgently nuzzling the spot just under Hux’s ear that always drove him wild.  “Are you going to indulge me?   _Freckle-Butt",_ he added in the unspoken space they shared.

 

Hux huffed out a sigh, rolling his eyes at the dreaded nickname, but there was nothing but fondness written across his features as he did. “We were having a moment and then you had to go and ruin it,” he teased, lifting his hands so he could run them up along Kylo’s chest, fingertips tracing over his collarbone and back down so he could slip them up under his shirt.

 

“You love it,” Kylo challenged him, gazing up at his husband with unguarded adoration.  “What are you doing?” he murmured, oddly shy now that they were exploring one another with eager fingers.  “Do you want this off?”

 

“Mm, I was thinking about it,” Hux mused softly, heaving another little sigh when his fingertips finally came in contact with bare skin--but this time the noise was infinitely more pleased. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea to start stripping off a lot of clothing, just in case they do need to gather themselves very _very_ quickly...but it didn’t stop him from exploring anyway, toying with the idea.

 

“Your thoughts are so focused right now.  It’s invigorating.”  Kylo all but preened under the attention as he stroked Hux’s lower lip with his thumb.  “Are you sure you’re ok with this, Brell?  There’ll be another transport in an hour.  I can control myself but don’t think for a moment I’ll keep my hands off you when we’re crammed in a seat together.”

 

More than happy to continue with his ‘focused’ thoughts, Hux considered it for a moment, lips parting to mouth at the pad of Kylo’s thumb--and never once breaking eye contact, even as his gaze clouded over with want.

 

“You think I could last a whole hour with you here, and keep my hands to myself? It’s too late for that, I think…”

 

“Good.  I was hoping you’d say that.”  He drew Hux down into a long kiss that brooked no argument, taking his time the way Hux had taught him a long time ago.  With his eyes closed he fixed his attention on the sounds of their lips sealing and parting, a bird somewhere in the orchard, a breathy little moan from Hux, the wind in the grass…

 

“I can’t wait to be alone with you,” he murmured against Hux’s cheek; a promise.

 

“You are alone with me,” came his reply, fond and teasing all at once as he turned his face to nuzzle into Kylo’s jaw. “But...I know what you mean. And I look forward to it. More than you can know.”

 

Hux pressed his grin to his husband’s neck, scattering kisses up along the pale length of it and over his cheek, until he reached the corner of his mouth and plied him with more heated affection.

 

_“Eager, aren’t you?”_

 

Kylo rolled them onto their sides so he could tuck Hux in against him, wrapping long arms and legs around his lover possessively.  His ears perked up at the sound of distant conversation carried on the wind, somewhere over the hill no doubt, and he relaxed as it faded.

 

“All those years ago before we really knew one another I could never have imagined I’d find myself here... lying in a sunny spot in an orchard with you.  It’s so… domestic?”  He chuckled.  “Something from a bad holo-romance.  But I’m here and you’re here and I’d really like to take you somewhere more secluded and fuck you breathless.  So I suppose there’s that.”

 

Hux felt his breath catch on a laugh, and he offered up a little gesture somewhere between a shrug and a nod.

 

“There’s that,” he agreed quietly, pressing in close and letting his hand skim over Kylo’s chest once more, up over his throat and around to the nape of his neck where he could toy with the soft hair there. “If we’re in a bad holo, then am I allowed to lie here and tell you how stunning you are?”

 

“Sure,” the knight said affably.  “Tell me how pretty I am.”  He broke into an easy grin.  Between the two of them Hux had him beat, he was certain of it.  Even as his husband aged he grew easier on the eyes, as they said, with each passing year.  Now that he’d let his hair grow a little the vibrant color drew stares from the locals.  Hux hated the attention but Ren felt a secret sense of smugness about it.  Everything Hux's was also his and why shouldn’t he feel proud of having someone beautiful?

 

Hux fixed him with a certain sort of stare, halfway between appraising and incredulous, an arch to his copper brow.

 

“I’m not sure ‘pretty’ is quite the right word,” he murmured, gaze flickering back and forth between Kylo’s eyes as he studied them. “Or maybe it is. It’s one of them, anyway. So _pretty_ , even now...like when you were younger, brimming with all that gorgeous dark energy.” Hux wound a lock of hair around his finger, tugging ever so gently. “It’s still there. But it’s different, isn’t it?”

 

“I don’t know,” Kylo said, not quite meeting Hux’s eyes.  Different and more nuanced, to be sure, but the dark side exacted a terrible toll.  He’d never been comely and the scar had been the death of any aspirations in that direction.  No loss there, any vanity he’d harbored vanished to make room for more practical concerns.  The face that stared back at his in the mirror these days had a hollow gauntness about it that no one could find attractive.  Perpetual shadows beneath his eyes and the thinning of his cheeks only contributed to the decline.  As far as looks went his best years were far behind him.  “You don’t have to say that,” he said finally.

 

“Don’t have to say what?” Hux frowned at that, his expression more tightly knit as he looked up at the man beside him. Perhaps he’d said the wrong thing. “I didn’t mean it as a bad thing,” he added, letting the curl of Kylo’s hair slip from his fingers. “But I _did_ mean it when I said you were stunning. _Are_ stunning. Surely you know I wouldn’t lie to you.”

 

“I know you think I am,” Kylo said.  “I think you might be a bit biased.”  He took Hux’s hands in his and kissed the tips of his fingers in silent apology for bringing down the mood.  “I know what you meant, Brell.  But if I let you get carried away you’ll “wax poetic” about my nose for an hour.  Don’t even open your mouth to deny it, I know you better than that.”  He preemptively halted any rebuttal with a gentle kiss.

 

It was a good thing that he had, because Hux’s mouth had already fallen open to answer, cheeks flushing warm with a gentle sort of embarrassment. He’d wax poetic about every last part of Kylo, if he let him. But maybe it didn’t do as much for his husband’s self-image as he’d liked to imagine.

 

“What else are we supposed to do for an hour?” Hux murmured when their kiss ended, a shy smile tugging at his lips even as they brushed over Kylo’s.

 

“Enjoy this.  Who knows when we’ll have it again?”

 

He hadn’t meant it to come out that way, almost pleading, but it slipped out anyway.  Hux fixed him with an inscrutable look so he buried his face in his husband’s shoulder and sighed.

 

“I only meant that I like spending time with you. Maybe I won’t give you the fucking of your life when we get home-- don’t laugh.  Maybe I’ll disrobe you slowly and take my time.  I’m feeling sentimental and you’re just going to have to deal with it.”

 

He kept himself hidden against Hux, even another wave of laughter came up over the hill, startling and irritating him.  Let onlookers see the two of them huddled in each other’s arms.  His pride wasn’t as fragile as that.

 

Hux was quiet for a beat, considering Kylo’s words as they held each other against the cooling breeze. He didn’t fail to notice the way Kylo tensed a little, but he wasn’t sure it was important enough to press him about. Instead, he just slid his palm over his husband’s cheek, cupping his jaw as he drew him in for a gentle kiss.

 

“Why don’t we head home, then? I’ll show you just how happy I am to have to _deal_ with all that sentimentality.”

 

Kylo smiled a little.  “Ok, we’ll take these home, prepare them for baking, and then enjoy ourselves.”  Hux had found a recipe for baked apples at Kylo’s insistence.  Having them cored, filled with syrup, and cooked slowly in a hot oven was one of his few blissful memories from childhood.  

 

“Really, the apples come first?” Hux grinned around an incredulous little pout before he pushed himself upright, propped up on his hands as he leaned back in for one last kiss. “I’d argue that you’re far more delicious, but I know better than to try and change your mind.”

 

Hux rose to his feet a second later, gathering up their basket of apples and reaching down to extend a hand to his husband.

 

Kylo took the hand offered gratefully and walked them back towards the edge of the field with a steady hand on Hux’s back.  He wanted to pull them back down into a tangle of limbs and kiss him breathless while they waited at the pickup point but they couldn’t do that in a place so public.  Instead he shifted closer so that their hips jostled and leaned in to press his face momentarily into that soft red hair and close his eyes.

 

 _“You won’t regret it when I’m kissing you between every bite,”_ he pushed at Hux.

 

Hux just grinned to himself, tucking it further into the corners of his mouth as though he didn’t want anyone else to see, even as he nudged his head up just a bit to nuzzle into Kylo’s jaw.

 

“You _might when we end up with apple all over our bed because I can’t control myself...”_

 

“What makes you think we’ll get as far as the bed,” Kylo whispered slyly as the transport glided over the hill.  He glanced around quickly and before giving Hux an intimate little pinch that drew a gasp from his husband.  Quickly, he crossed his arms over his chest, the picture of innocence as the lumbering machine pulled to a stop in front of them.

 

Hux watched the shuttle doors open, a few visitors filtering out as he spared one last glance over his shoulder at his husband, gaze narrowed and grin playful.

 

“If you can behave until we get home, I’ll feed you by hand,” he hummed, just low enough for Kylo to hear. Not waiting for a response, he gave a polite nod to the last passenger to pass by, and slipped inside.

  
As to whether or not Kylo could actually do it, he wasn’t sure he really minded.


End file.
